Holiday apartment in Ferrara: Renaissance, cycling routes and Po Delta

Since 1995, Ferrara has been listed as an outstanding example of a Renaissance city on the UNESCO World Heritage List. The UNESCO World Heritage site “Ferrara, City of the Renaissance, and its Po Delta” connects the city centre with adjacent agricultural areas in the extensive former Po Delta. Ferrara therefore brings together a densely documented urban history and a vast landscape area.

Culture

The historic city centre is almost entirely surrounded by more than nine kilometres of walls and green areas; cycle paths follow attractive routes there. The Este court contributed to the emergence of a Ferrarese Renaissance culture by fostering the exchange of artists, writers and technicians. Evidence of this exchange has been preserved in the World Heritage area.

From 1492, Ferrara developed the Addizione Erculea, an urban planning scheme intended to double the medieval city and create wide, straight streets, churches, monasteries, palaces and fortifications. Following the Addizione Erculea, Castello Estense became the residence of the Este family and the ducal residence.

Among the city’s prominent cultural sites is the Palazzo dei Diamanti, built from 1493 according to a design by Biagio Rossetti and now home to the Pinacoteca Civica and exhibitions by Ferrara Arte. The Museo Schifanoia presents around 250 works in 21 rooms. The Salone dei Mesi is considered one of the great masterpieces of the European Renaissance. The Museo di Casa Romei preserves frescoes from various churches in the city, as well as tomb slabs, statues and architectural decorations from historic buildings in Ferrara.

The MEIS presents the two-thousand-year history of Jewish life in Italy and pays particular attention to persecution and the Shoah. The exhibition “Ebrei, una storia italiana” traces the development of Italian Judaism from Roman times through the Middle Ages to the Renaissance.

Stage and festivals

The Teatro Comunale was built between 1773 and 1797 according to plans by Antonio Foschini and Cosimo Morelli. In 1798, it was inaugurated as an Italian theatre with Marco Portogallo’s opera “Gli Orazi e i Curiazi”. Today, the Teatro Comunale hosts more than 160 performances each year in the fields of drama, dance, opera, concerts, experimental theatre and children’s theatre.

The historic Carnevale degli Este is a four-day festival from Shrove Thursday to Sunday. It attracts tourists and curious visitors every year and includes costume parades, dances, celebrations in the palaces and public banquets. The historic, oval Piazza Ariostea hosts the Palio di Ferrara every year.

Nature

The Botanical Garden of the University of Ferrara covers approximately 4,500 m² and features irregular paths between trees, flowerbeds and greenhouses. North of Ferrara lies the Parco Urbano-agricolo, dedicated to Bassani. It covers approximately 1,200 hectares and is used for jogging, walking and cycling.

Cycling

Ferrara’s “Bicipolitana” uses colour coding to mark the main axes of the urban cycle network and supports safe, continuous cycling connections for tourism and leisure. The municipal “Bicipolitana” comprises eight designated routes: R1 Ciclovia Bologna, R2 Ciclovia Comacchio, R3 Ciclovia Pontegradella, R4 Ciclovia Copparo, R5 Ciclovia Francolino, R6 Ciclovia Pontelagoscuro, R7 Ciclovia Modena and R8 Ciclovia Bondeno.

The final section of the “In bici tra Valli e Delizie” route runs along the Canale Circondariale to Ostellato, the gateway to the Parco del Delta del Po.

Regional cuisine

Typical specialities of the Ferrara region to try include Cappellacci di zucca and Salamina da sugo.

More destinations to choose from: Lido Degli Estensi, Lido Degli Scacchi, Lido Delle Nazioni, Lido Di Spina, Porto Garibaldi, Lido Di Pomposa, Massa Fiscaglia, Lido Di Volano, Portomaggiore, Vigarano Mainarda, Ostellato, Migliarino, Lagosanto, Ferrara, Dogato, Cento, Gambulaga, San Nicolò, Goro, Comacchio, Copparo, Stellata, Sant'agostino, Quartesana, Porporana, Codigoro, Runco, Renazzo, Bondeno, Berra, Serravalle, Tamara, Francolino, Fortezza, Formignana, Dosso, Mirabello, Argenta, San Bartolomeo In Bosco, Ravalle, Voghenza, Jolanda di Savoia, San Giuseppe, Settepolesini, Cona, Malborghetto di Boara, Monestirolo, San Martino, Mesola, Poggio Renatico, Ambrogio, Chiesa Nuova, Volania, Macchiavella, Ca' Matte.

To the overarching travel overview: Emilia-Romagna.